AuthorTopic: The Repopulation (Read 31455 times)

- Skills based system with over one hundred skills, and 15 tiers per skill.- Unique generated mission system where NPCs seek out players with job offers.- Player created cities and structures.- Engagement system provides random encounters throughout the world which can grow and mutate based on how players handle them. This includes dungeons that can be invaded on certain levels and the invasions can spread throughout the dungeon if left untreated, or wilderness areas that can become overrun by infestations. - Advanced crafting system.- Nation based warfare includes two starting Nations and a Rogue Nation option that in effect allows each guild to form their own independent nation (PvP).

Our initial description was pretty vague on the various features but we plan on filling in some additional details over time. The first area that we'll be touching is the Generated Mission system.

Mission Overview

The Repopulation uses a mixture of generated and static missions. There are three basic types:

Static Missions

Static missions are available at most hubs. These typically are faction raising or collection oriented missions. But also include some introductory missions such as Patrols of the area to introduce players to the location. In general we don't have long static storyline missions. Those are handled via generated missions, which can be tailored to the local area.

Some examples of static missions are bounties on local hazards or rival factions, or providing the local NPCs with resources for their shops in exchange for services.

One-Time Missions

Although One-Time Missions can be completed more than one time, their name comes from the fact that they will only be available to the first person to complete them. These are random and rare missions where NPCs will spawn in random locations marked throughout an area. They are put in place in general to reward players for exploration. Once a player completes their mission the NPCs will despawn.

Some examples of One-Time missions are finding dying NPCs in the wilderness who need you to take care of an Heirloom until they are re-cloned, or stranded and injured NPCs in need of medical attention or a safe escort to town.

Generated Missions

The bulk of the Missions are generated missions. And that is primarily what we'll focus on today. If a player is flagged as Looking For Work (an option) NPCs will seek them out with job offers. The offers will typically come from NPCs in the local area and will be tailored to the players skill set. The job offers come in the form of an email from the NPC describing their current situation. Players can then either accept the job offer, or decline it.

The generated mission system works on the concept of templates and roles. Missions are created from templates which can specify a variety of criteria. Each of our NPCs has a variety of settings that make them eligible or ineligible for certain generated mission types. This includes a mix of static and changing traits. Their Profession and Personality for example are static traits. While their Mood and Dilemma are mutating traits. Mutating traits can be altered by yourself or other players completing missions. For example, if you double cross an NPC with a Vindictive personality, they may seek revenge. Each Dilemma has a cause, and that cause can be either a player or an NPC.

NPCs on generated (or static missions) can also react to players. If you've helped an NPC in a major way they may speak about you to other players or NPCs as they walk by. If you've done something particularly harmful to an NPC they could curse you as you walk by, throw a rock at you, or spread the word of your treachery to other players. These actions all take place client side and are determined by the NPCs mutating traits.

Unlike generated mission systems of the past, our system is fully featured. Everything that you've become accustomed to in static quests in your favorite games is represented in our generated missions. There are generated mission chains, and epic missions that have generated steps. Because the required NPCs for each mission can strict criteria of what types of NPCs are required (based on their personality, mood, creature type, etc) it also ensures that the NPCs will always fit into the storyline of the mission. If a mission requires a Greedy Merchant, then it will choose an NPC that is appropriate. We hope that this, combined with the various random NPC chatter will help players identify different NPC personality types and make them feel like more than just a cardboard cutout.

Branching Outcomes

Missions can have branched outcomes. Whenever you speak to an NPC at any given step you interact with them through a chat bubbles system. You will often have multiple options of how to respond to them and those options or failing/completing a certain step can also change the way the mission progresses. Many of our mission templates have multiple outcomes with different sets of rewards based on how the mission plays out.

These branches can also be determined by skill checks. For example there will often be a normal and safe response, but an additional response which utilizes a skill check. The skill check is displayed in parenthesis after the option. Examples of this are using Intimidation to bully an NPC, Diplomacy to try to charm your way into a better situation, or using the Hacking skill to try to through a security system. A check is then made against that particular skill and the mission can fork different ways based on if you succeed or fail. Oftentimes failing these checks can negatively impact your mission, so there is some risk involved.

Rewards

Mission rewards can be either static or generated, and the rewards can be determined based on if certain hidden flags were completed. In addition to the typical Item, Credit and Faction rewards, we also feature two special reward types that I'll cover here.

The first of those is DNA rewards. Since we are skills based, we didn't want to create a situation where players were being punished for the time spent doing missions. So we counter that by offering DNA rewards. The DNA rewards can be generated and allow you to get an instant skill increase to a certain type of skill. For example Combat DNA would allow you to increase your skill in any of the Combat skill lines.

Perhaps the biggest reason for completing missions though is the ability to gain new abilities. Most mission templates have a chance to reward a player with an Ability Card from one of their Learnable Abilities. It's been mentioned before that we are a skills based game, but we also feature tiers within each skill. At each of those tiers there can be new abilities available to you, but you do not automatically receive these abilities. They must be learned. Missions provide the easiest method of learning those abilities. When an Ability Card is granted it will be for a random ability that you qualify for, and it will be based on the difficulty of the mission.

We've covered some ground here today on the Mission system. Next up we'll tackle the Engagement system.

Always nice to see some Sci-Fi MMORPG being developed. The field is over saturated with fantasy types and its refreshing to see some Sci-Fi ones. Now if they can only become as big and popular as fantasy based ones, then we will truly see a shift in development.

Keep up the great work and I will be watching this project closely and it is similar to what my team is working on.

The easiest way to describe the Engagement system in The Repopulation is as a Random and Mutating Public Quest. Engagements occur randomly throughout the world, and depending on how players respond to them they can mutate and spread. Engagements can change the entire content of an area, for better or for worse.

For those unfamiliar with Public Quests, here is a brief overview of that mechanic. Public Quests that are shared by all players in an area, at least by those of the appropriate faction. There are objectives, and anyone who contributes to completing those objectives is eligible for a reward upon completion. The level of their contribution affects their chances and quality of loot. Public Quests have been a successful mechanic in several titles, originating with Warhammer Online but also being found in Champions Online, Everquest 2 and Rift. The key advantage of Public Quests is that they encourage teamwork and make it easy for players to meet and cooperate with one another.

So how do our engagements differ from Public Quests? Let's take a look.

Randomly Occurring

Public Quests commonly occurred in static locations and repeated shortly after the previous incarnation of them was complete. Engagements in The Repopulation spawn randomly throughout the world and using any number of different templates.

They Spread

Engagements templates can specify a complex chain of stages. Each stage can be end when certain specifications are met, or after a period of time. Depending on how an engagement ended it can progress to a different stage and it can also spread to other nearby engagement nodes. Those child nodes can in turn continue to spread to children of their own.

To give a functional example of a spreading Engagement we can take a look at the system in the Aemar Mine. Under normal circumstances the mine is filled with standard mission opportunities related to it's operations. But there are any number of events that can occur randomly and alter the complex entirely.

One of those scenarios is an invasion by the Lesoo. They will invade through the first floor and if they are not stopped they will barricade themselves in and then begin spreading to the lower levels, one at a time. While a level is occupied by the Lesoo, there will be new mission opportunities, though the old ones are currently defunct until the invaders can be cleared and operations can be restored. This includes new bosses and mini-bosses that grow in power the longer they have occupied the area.

This is just one of several scenarios that can occur in the mines and each alters the mine in one way or another while it is in effect.

World Altering

As Engagements spread, they can completely change the environment of an area. This includes appearances, NPCs, and missions. NPCs can set up permanent camps or defenses that will remain until they are stopped.

Our hopes are that the engagement system will prevent content from becoming stale by providing an ever-changing world where the players actions really do matter.

Nations play a very large role in The Repopulation. But what is a Nation? A Nation in The Repopulation is an extended form of Guild. There are two major factions in the Repopulation: OWON and FPR. These factions are idealogically different, and are at a state of war. Newly created characters will be prompted to choose to join one of those two factions, but will at the onset be a member of the Military Reserves. This means that they can be attacked by rival factions in certain areas, but are protected in others. They can choose to join the Active Military at any time, which will allow them to attack and be attacked by other Active Military members in those areas.

There is also what we refer to as Rogue Nations. A Rogue Nation is a player formed Nation. It is similar to a Guild in other games, except that the guild also acts as it's own faction. All Rogue Nation members are automatically flagged as Active Military, and can be attacked on sight by any Active Military members of OWON or FPR, as well as by members of other Rogue Nations which are not allied with their Nation.

OWON and FPR Nations, provide a more casual friendly approach to PvP, where Rogue Nations cater more to hardcore PvP players and guilds. Player Created cities are formed on a per Nation basis. Once a Nation has placed a Control Center in a Structure Area that area is claimed by their Nation and structures created in that area must belong to the same Nation. Rival Nations can destroy the Control Center and then create their own there in order to conquer an area.

Player Created cities can create a wide variety of structures and each has its own benefit. Some are beneficial only to the owner of that structure, where others benefit the area in general. Some structure types include:

Barracks: Produce guards to defend the city.Cloning Facilities: Provide additional respawn points for players of this Nation.Shops: Provide NPC shopkeepers of various types.Defensive Structures: Provide defensive capabilities such as turrets which will attack invaders. There are various grades of Turrets.Harvesters: A slow source of automated resource collection. There are variants for various resource types.Housing: Housing structures provide homes for players and can be decorated with furniture or trophy items.Walls: Provide shelter for a city.Workshops: Provide a slow source of manufactured goods. There are numerous variants.

Owning a player created city can allow Nations to create choke points, aid them with collecting supplies, provide defenses and open up new Mission and Engagement opportunities.